Growing perennials from cuttings involves creating a new plant from a stem that starts out with no roots at all. If you’ve ever stuck a stem of ivy in a glass of water and watched it grow roots, you already have some idea how this technique works. Not all perennials can grow from cuttings. Use the cutting method for perennials that don’t tolerate division.

Follow these steps to coax your cuttings into growing roots:

Punch a few pencil-sized holes in the side and bottom of any clean, flat, shallow container to provide drainage for excess water.

For a large number of cuttings, a plastic kitty litter tray is a good size. A plastic container of any sort works well if you’re rooting only a few cuttings (recycled food containers are perfect).